Archive | May, 2015

New Delhi, May 29(PTI) The Supreme Court today refused to stay the observations of the Delhi High Court, which had termed as “suspect” the recent Centre’s notification clipping powers of the AAP government, saying they were “only tentative in nature” without expressing any opinion on its validity.

It, however, decided to examine the Centre’s challenge to May 25 High Court order on the jurisdiction of NCT government’s anti-corruption branch (ACB) to arrest policemen.

The court, which noted that the AAP Government has filed a fresh petition in the High Court against the May 21 notification giving discretion to the Lieutenant Governor in appointing bureaucrats, directed the HC to hear it independently without being influenced by the observations made by the single judge on the notification.

The court sought response within three weeks from Delhi Government on Centre’s plea seeking stay of the May 25 order and certain observations made by it against the Centre’s May 21 notification.

“ACB police station shall not take any cognisance of the offences against officers, employees and functionaries of the Central Government,” the notification had said.

A vacation bench comprising Justices A K Sikri and U U Lalit said it will consider the Centre’s plea for stay after the reply is filed by the Delhi government in three weeks.

The apex court referred to the plea of Solicitor General Ranjit Kumar for stay of the observations made in paras 44 as well as 65 to 67 (of the May 25 order). It said Since notice was being issued, the prayer for stay will be considered after the reply is filed within three weeks.

“However, insofar as observations made in para 66 are concerned, we find that they pertain to Notification issued on May 21, 2015 which was issued after the judgement was reserved by the High Court. Neither the Union of India was party who had issued this Notification nor was there any occasion to any hearing on the said Notification.

“We are also informed that this Notification has been challenged by the Delhi Government by filing the Writ Petition in the High Court under Article 226 of the Constitution.

“We, therefore, clarify that the observations made therein were only tentative in nature without expressing any opinion on the validity of Notification dated May 21, 2015 and it would be open to the High Court to deal with the said petition independently without being influenced by any observations made in para 66, or for that matter in other paragraphs of the impugned order,” the bench said.

New Delhi, May 30 (PTI) Even as his Cabinet decided today to promulgate the Land Acquisition Ordinance for the third time, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that the legislation is not “a matter of life or death for me” and that he was prepared to accept any suggestions.

“This is not a matter of life or death for me. And neither was it the agenda of my party or the government,” he said in an interview carried by The Tribune newspaper.

In a separate interview, Modi responded strongly to Rahul Gandhi’s jibe that the government was “suit boot ki sarkar”.

“Suit boot is definitely more acceptable than suitcase.

After ruling for 60 years, the Congress has suddenly remembered the poor. People of this country have suffered and remained poor due to shortsighted policies of the Congress,” he told ANI.

Hitting out at Congress, Modi said, “Did the coal and spectrum scandals or the CWG fiasco benefit the poor? Everyone knows who were the beneficiaries — some chosen industrialists and contractors.”

The Prime Minister also spoke about the controversy surrounding the ‘One-Rank, One-Pension’ (OROP) for ex-servicemen and told the newspaper, “We are committed to OROP, but we are in consultation with defence personnel regarding the definition of OROP.

“Our government is here for five years and we cannot do anything without consulting the people concerned. The dialogue is being actively pursued. There is no need to have any doubt on this.

New Delhi, May 28 (PTI) The AAP government today moved the Delhi High Court challenging the Centre’s recent notification giving the Lieutenant Governor absolute powers in appointing bureaucrats in the national capital.

The petition was mentioned before a bench of justices B D Ahmed and Sanjeev Sachdeva, saying, “The Delhi government has decided to move against the Ministry of Home Affair’s (MHA’s) May 21 notification.”

“As per the notification, the LG would have jurisdiction over matters connected with services, public orders, police and land, and…services of bureaucrats…allowing him discretionary powers to seek the opinion of the CM,” it said.

The petition was mentioned by Delhi government standing counsel Raman Duggal a day after the Centre moved the Supreme Court challenging an order of the Delhi HC which termed as “suspect” MHA’s recent notification barring the city government’s Anti-corruption Branch (ACB) from acting against its officers in criminal offences.

The HC had also held that the LG cannot act in his discretion.

Duggal also said that he has challenged all notifications issued by the Centre in the past. The bench has listed the matter for hearing tomorrow.

The Delhi government, led by the Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, has also challenged the appointment of Shakuntala Gamlin as acting chief secretary by the LG.

Q. No.1: Sir, you have completed one year as Prime Minister. Can you please sum up your experience?

Ans: When I took office, the civil service was totally demoralised and afraid of taking decisions. The Cabinet system also was in disrepair due to the operation of extra constitutional authorities from outside and groups of ministers from inside. There was a gulf between the States and the Centre and high degree of mistrust. Foreigners as well as Indians felt despondent about Indian governance. Changing that atmosphere of gloom was a very challenging task and I faced many difficulties in rectifying the situation and bringing back confidence and hope.

Q. No.2: Soon after becoming the Prime Minister, you had said that you are trying to understand Delhi since you were new here. Have you understood Delhi?

Ans: When I referred to Delhi, I meant the Central Government. My experience is that Delhi behaves the way the leadership defines. Our team has worked to bring in changes in the work culture of Delhi for making the Government more pro-active and professional. When I assumed office, I found that the corridors of power in Delhi were littered with lobbies of various kinds. The task of cleaning the corridors of power (or cleaning the lobby of lobbies) was important so that the government machinery itself is improved. This process of correction and cleaning took quite some time but it will provide long term benefits in the form of clean and fair governance.

Q.No.3: And what have you understood?

Ans: One thing I fail to understand in Delhi is how the same parties which as State Governments seek amendments to the Land Acquisition law, suddenly become opponents of the amendments when they are sitting in Delhi.

Q. No.4: Looking back at this one year, do you think there is something which you could or should have done differently than you did?

Ans: I had two options. One option was to do things methodically to mobilise the government machinery, correct the many defects and ills which had crept into the system, so as to provide long term benefits to the country in the form of clean, efficient and fair governance. The other option was to use the mandate to announce new populist schemes and bombard the media with announcements to keep the people fooled. The latter course is easier and people are used to it. However, I did not choose this and instead chose the more difficult path of correcting the defective government machinery in a quiet and methodical way. If I had chosen the populist course, it would have been a breach of the trust placed in me by the people.

Q. No.5: During the first year, you initiated a number of programmes and schemes like Swacch Bharat, toilets for schools, jandhan, insurance for poor, pension scheme. What are the plans for the future?

Ans: First, I should mention that Swacchh Bharat and school toilets are not merely for cleanliness. The provision of toilets is a minimum requirement for the dignity of our women and it is unfortunate that we have not done this so many years after independence.

Our future focus will be on women, farmers, the urban poor and on employment. Whatever we have started, needs to be taken forward and into the villages and municipal areas. We have to address the issues which prevent clean cities, clean rivers, regular, uninterrupted supply of essentials like water and electricity. We have to carry out reforms which help us in making 50 million houses for the house-less. We have to see that all regions of the country, particularly the east and west, are brought on par in development parameters.

We have to build the capacity of our institutions, employees and workers. Our regulatory environment has not been encouraging to research, innovation and enterprise. Our boys and girls are doing so well in other countries, but we are not able to use them effectively at home. We have made a beginning by setting up the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) and Self-Employment and Talent Utilisation (SETU. A common requirement for all of these, is corrections in our policy regime and also in the administrative culture.

Q. No.6: You wanted to push economic reforms at fast pace. But some key reform bills like Land Acquisition and GST have faced problems. Do you think obstacles posed to such reform measures is hurting the country? What will be your message to those opposing these measures?

Ans: Both the GST and the proposed Land Acquisition Bill are beneficial for the country. The core essence of these Bills should be appreciated by all the parties keeping aside political motives. Long term interest of the nation should be foremost. The fact that the States have agreed to the GST design, shows the maturity of our federal system and the GST

Bill has already been passed by the Lok Sabha. It is a matter of time before these laws are passed.

Q. No.7: If the reform measures are not pushed fast, what kind of a message will it send to foreign investors particularly since you have been making utmost efforts to bring maximum investments?

Ans: One of the peculiarities of Delhi is that the term ‘reform’ is associated only with passing of laws in Parliament. In fact, the most important reforms are those needed, without new laws, at various levels of Government, in work practices and procedures. We have initiated a number of major reforms. These include decontrol of diesel prices, direct transfer of cooking gas subsidy, enhancement of FDI limits, revamping of railways and many others. The truth is that reform has actually been pushed very fast and in fact as a result FDI has already witnessed an increase of 39% in the period April 2014 to February 2015 compared to the previous year.

Q. No.8: What further reform measures are you planning in the future?

Ans: The success of the steps that we have already taken and the positive response of the people throughout the country to our actions in the first year have encouraged us to do even more. Our focus will be on P2G2, i.e. Pro-active, Pro-people Good Governance reforms. Another aspect we will emphasise and strengthen is that the State and the Centre are one team which has to work together for reforms to be effective.

Q. No.9: You have already opened up a number of sectors for FDI. What are the other areas that you may consider opening up for FDI in the future?

Ans: The measures already taken have increased the attractiveness of India as an investment destination and confidence has improved. Wherever there is high employment potential and wherever we have strong local talent, for example, in research and development: those will be the areas of focus for FDI. We have created the National Infrastructure Investment Fund. This is a major step which will increase the flow of foreign investments into all infrastructure sectors, without needing separate sector-by-sector approached.

Q. No.10: With regard to economic policy, is RBI on the same page as the Finance Ministry? I am asking this question because there are sometimes remarks by RBI Governor which indicate a disconnect with the Finance Ministry.

Ans: I am surprised that an important and credible media agency like PTI is drawing an incorrect inference based on remarks made in different contexts. RBI has its functional autonomy which the Government and the Finance Ministry always respect and preserve.

Q. No.11: What growth figure are you targeting this financial year?

Ans: The experience of the last year and the enthusiasm and encouragement of 1.25 billion Indians give me the confidence that all economic indicators will exceed the targets. I do not want to undermine the potential and the efforts by giving any figure which may turn out to be too low.

Q. No.12: On Land Acquisition Bill, opposition is saying you want to benefit the corporates. You have been denying this and saying that the legislation is for the benefit of the poor farmers and villagers. Still the opposition is unrelenting. Do you think the resistance by opposition is justified?

Ans: I don’t want to get into political mudslinging. However I do want to ask whether those who allotted coal mines and forest land, rich with mineral resources, to their favourite corporates have the moral right to question this government which is working ceaselessly for the welfare of all sections of society. I am astonished that even after running a government for 60 years, the ones asking these questions have such poor knowledge of administration and governance. The whole country knows that the subject of Land is not with the Central Government and the Centre does not require lands. All rights relating to land are with the states. The 120 year old land acquisition act was amended by the previous government without even 120 minutes of discussion in Parliament. Thinking the bill was good for farmers, we also supported it at that time. Later many complaints came from the states. We cannot disrespect the wishes of states. One should not be so arrogant as to avoid correcting mistakes, so we brought the bill to rectify the errors, that too in response to the demand of the states. Anyone who looks at our proposed amendments without politically-tinted glasses will give us full marks.

Q. No.13: Since there is a deadlock on the Land Bill, what is the way out? Are you ready to accommodate the views of the opposition on the Land Bill? Which are the possible aspects in which the government can agree to opposition views?

Ans: Gaon, Garib, Kisan: if the suggestions are favourable to these downtrodden groups and are in the interests of the nation, we will accept those suggestions.

Q. No.14: During this year, your government as well as Sangh Parivar have been repeatedly targeted whenever any person from minority community or minority institutions have been attacked. Even you personally have been targeted. What do you have to say on this?

Ans: Any criminal act against any individual or institution in the country is to be condemned. The attackers must be strongly punished as per law. I have said this before and I say it again: any discrimination or violence against any community will not be tolerated. My position on this is very clear: Sab ka saath, sab ka vikas. We stand for every one of the 1.25 billion Indians regardless or caste or creed and we will work for the progress of every one of them

Q. No.15: You have travelled to a number of countries over the last one year. Opposition has attacked you, saying that you hardly stay in the country. What is your response to this criticism?

Ans: We live in an inter-dependent world. An isolated India is not in our interest. 17 years without a visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Nepal was not a good situation. Just because we are a large country, we cannot be arrogant and think that we can ignore others. We live in a different era. Terrorism is global and can come from even remote countries.

International summits and organisations like WTO take decisions which will bind us and if we are not present in such

summits, we may be hurt by the decisions taken. In a democracy, everyone has the right to criticise the Government. Normally, the opposition gets more media space and even the people find it interesting to listen to voices against the government of the day. Ever since I took office, my friends in the opposition have been levelling baseless allegations about my foreign trips. Had these trips been a failure or had we made any mistakes, then they would have based their comments on specific issues. In the absence of any specific issue, they are only discussing the number of days and the number of countries. Look at the maturity of the people: all recent surveys show that the highest approval rating is for our foreign policy. When opponents keep harping on one point, it is a sure sign of success!

Q. No.16: While you have been accused by opposition of being pro-corporates, some in the industry like Deepak Parekh say nothing is happening on the ground for the industry. What do you say?

Ans: The answer is to be found in your question itself. If opponents are accusing us of being pro-corporate but the Corporates are saying we are not helping them, then I take it that our decisions and initiatives are pro-people and in the

long term interests of the nation.

Q. No.17: Rahul Gandhi has recently got active and raised issues of farmers as well as Land Acquisition Bill. He has also called your government ‘suit-boot ki sarkar’. What is your comment on this?

Ans: The Congress has suffered a crushing defeat and ended with less than 50 seats. Even after a year, they are not able to digest this. The people have punished them for their sins of omission and commission. We thought they would learn from this, but it looks as though they are proving right the earlier saying that if con is the opposite of pro, then Congress is the opposite of Progress.

Q. No.18: Recently, CAG has raised questions over the country’s defence preparedness. It has said that the army has ammunition which can last only 10-20 days if there is a war. Its report was based on 2013 figures. What would you say on

this?

Ans: National security is a serious matter and I do not think it is in proper to discuss such details in a public forum. However, I can assure our countrymen that the country is safe in the hands of the brave warriors of our Army, Navy,

Air Force and Coast Guard.

Q. No.19: One of the campaign promises was that the new Government would take stringent action against black money. Has there been any progress in this?

Ans: The very first decision of this Government after taking office was to constitute the Special Investigation Team to pursue black money. This step had been pending for years with no action and we executed it in our very first Cabinet

meeting. Subsequently, we have also brought a new Bill which will combat black money held abroad and it prescribes stiff

penalties. Thanks to our efforts, an agreement was reached at the G-20 summit in November 2014 to curb tax evasion and in particular to exchange information between countries. This will help us to trace black money. These are very strong and

concrete actions.

Q. No.20: What efforts have you taken to change the way the Government works?

Ans: We have tried to remind Government servants that they are servants of the public and have restored discipline in Central Government offices. I have done a small thing, one that appears small from outside. I regularly interact with officers over tea; it is part of my working style. Philosophically, I feel that the country will progress only if

we work as teams. The Prime Minister and the Chief Ministers are one team. The Cabinet Ministers and the State Ministers

are another team. The Civil Servants at the Centre and the States are yet another team. This is the only way we can

successfully develop the country. We have taken a number of steps for this and the abolition of the Planning Commission

and its replacement with NITI Aayog in which States are full partners is a major step in this direction.

Q. No.21: There is criticism that all powers are concentrated in the PMO. Is there any merit in such a view?

Ans: Your question is loaded. It would have been better if this question had been asked when an unconstitutional authority was sitting above the constitutional authority and exercising power over the Prime Minister’s Office. The Prime Minister and the Prime Minister’s Office are very much part of the constitutional scheme, not outside it. We have made major increases in the delegated powers of individual Ministries so that many decisions that earlier needed to come to the Prime Minister and the Cabinet can now be taken by Ministries themselves. The financial delegation for ministries has been trebled. Devolution to the states has been increased and states have become full partners in governance through the NITI Aayog. All successful and transformational administrations need close coordination across different Ministries and there is nothing unique in it. We have not made any changes in the Business Rules of Government and decisions are taken by those authorised to take them.

Q. No.22: You received a massive mandate from the people who wanted a change from absence of governance in the

final years of UPA II. One year on, there are murmurs that you have not exactly delivered Achche Din. Are people being

impatient?

Ans: The 21st Century should be India’s century but from 2004 to 2014 bad ideas and bad actions have affected the

country adversely. Every day was a new bad day and there were new scandals. People were furious. Today, after a year, even

our opponents have not accused us of bad actions. You tell me, if there is not a single scandal, is this is not Achche Din?

Q. No.23: The country is facing an agrarian crisis. The issue of farmer suicides has become a cause of political

slugfest. The Government has taken a number of steps to address the situation faced by farmers. What more is the

Government planning to do?

Ans: Suicides by farmers has been a serious concern for several years. Political point-scoring through comparing

how many suicides occurred under which government will not solve the problem. For a government of any party, and for

every one of us, even one suicide is worrisome. I had said in Parliament with great sadness that mudslinging between the

ruling and opposition parties would be unproductive and, respecting the sanctity of Parliament, we need to collectively

find an answer to this issue. We need to find where we have gone wrong and why we are not able to solve this over so many

years. I have asked all parties for their suggestions to bring contentment and security to our farmers. I want to assure our

farmers that this Government will never be found wanting in doing whatever is needed for their welfare.

Q. No.24: After getting a massive drubbing in the Lok Sabha elections the Congress Party seems to have founds its

voice of late, with both Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi attacking the Government. Mrs. Gandhi has accused your

Government of showing ‘obstinate arrogance’ in Parliament and working to scuttle administrative transparency. She said that

yours is a Government by ‘one person’. What is your response?

Ans: Perhaps, she is referring to the fact that, earlier extra-constitutional authorities were the ones really wielding power whereas now power is wielded only by constitutional means. If the charge is that we are working through constitutional channels and not listening to any extra constitutional authorities, then I plead guilty to that

charge.

Q. No.25: Your Government has also come in for criticism for its ‘clamp down’ on NGOs with the US saying that such actions could have a ‘chilling’ effect on freedom of speech and expression. Is that an alarmist view?

Ans: The current Foreign Contribution Regulation Act was passed by the UPA Government in 2010, not by this Government. The steps taken are only to enforce the law as passed by the previous Government. There has been no action taken contrary to law. No patriotic citizen can object to this.

Q. No.26: Sir, you have been talking about Cooperative Federalism. As Prime Minister, what is your experience of dealing with Chief Ministers? How cooperative are they in strengthening this Cooperative Federalism?

Ans: The experience of Chief Ministers with the Centre over many years has generated an atmosphere of dis-trust. “Doodh ka jala chhaachh bhi phook phook kar peeta hai” –once bitten twice shy. Even now there is a lot of mutual suspicion between the Centre and the States as a legacy of the previous decades. However, I can say that there has been a good beginning in building trust. The NITI Aayog is acting as a catalyst to build a vibrant Centre-State partnership to take the nation forward. This spirit of partnership and team work is gradually increasing and the fruits will be seen in the coming years.

New Delhi, May 28 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that he has consciously avoided choosing a “populist course” and had instead opted for a “more difficult path” of correcting the defective government machinery.

Looking back at his one year in office, Modi, when asked if there was something which he could have done differently, said that he had two options.

“One option was to do things methodically to mobilise the government machinery, correct the many defects and ills which had crept into the system, so as to provide long term benefits to the country in the form of clean, efficient and fair governance.

“The other option was to use the mandate to announce new populist schemes and bombard the media with announcements to keep the people fooled. The latter course is easier and people are used to it.

“However, I did not choose this and instead chose the more difficult path of correcting the defective government machinery in a quiet and methodical way. If I had chosen the populist course, it would have been a breach of the trust placed in me by the people,” Modi told PTI.

Asked to enumerate steps that he had taken to change the way the government works, he said, “we have tried to remind government servants that they are servants of the public and have restored discipline in Central government officers.

“I have done a small thing, one that appears small from outside. I regularly interact with officers over tea; it is part of my working style.

New Delhi, May 28 (PTI) Amid his ongoing standoff with the AAP government, Delhi Lt Governor Najeeb Jung today met Union Home Secretary L C Goyal and had a talk over phone with Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

Jung arrived in the Home Ministry early and had a nearly 20-minute one-on-one meeting with the Home Secretary.

Sources said they discussed about the resolution passed by the Delhi Assembly yesterday and the government’s stand in the apex court with regard to the Special Leave Petition.

After the meeting with the Home Secretary, the Lt Governor declined to speak to journalists.

Sources said Jung had a telephonic talk with the Home Minister too.

However, what transpired in their conversation is not known immediately.

The meeting and the telephone call came a day after the Delhi Assembly passed a resolution rejecting the Home Ministry notification giving absolute powers to the Lt Governor in several matters, including transfer and postings of senior bureaucrats.

The Home Ministry yesterday approached the Supreme Court challenging the Delhi High Court ruling that the May 21 notification was “suspect” and noted that the mandate of the people “must be respected by LG”.

The tussle between Jung and the Kejriwal government started over the appointment of senior bureaucrat Shakuntala Gamlin as the acting Chief Secretary on May 15.

Kejriwal yesterday lambasted Jung saying he was “dancing to the tune” of the Centre and “deliberately” trying to create obstacles for the AAP government.

New Delhi, May 27 (PTI) Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today hit out at the Modi government saying it was “harping” on corruption to divert people’s attention to non-issues and asserted that he never used public office to “enrich” himself, family or friends.

In a scathing attack, Singh said that institutions of democracy are under threat and the entire edifice of the welfare state is now being dismantled in the guise of promoting faster economic growth.

“As far as I am concerned, I can say in all humility that I have not used my public office to enrich myself, to enrich my family or my friends. And still the BJP government keeps on harping on this theme of corruption because it wants to distract the attention of the people to non-issues,” he said in a hard-hitting speech at an event here.

His comments came in the wake of former TRAI Chairman Pradip Baijal’s allegations that Singh had warned him of harm if he did not cooperate on 2G telecom licenses. Baijal, who was probed for several years in connection with the 2G spectrum allocation scam case, also claimed that the CBI wanted him to “implicate” Arun Shourie and Ratan Tata in the case.

Asserting that many of UPA’s programmes were being repackaged and marketed as initiatives of the BJP government, Singh said, “What the BJP had opposed when we were in power are now being sold as its contribution”.

Rejecting criticism of “policy paralysis” in the UPA, he said when his government left, India was the second fastest growing economy in the world and noted there was a “fragileness” in economic recovery under the current dispensation.

“The past is continuously being rewritten to promote a highly biased and communal view. Dissent is being suppressed,” Singh said.

“Institutions of democracy are under threat. The entire edifice of the welfare state is now being dismantled in the guise of promoting faster economic growth, whereas they are two sides of the same coin,” he said.

The Congress party has tried hard to ensure that India flourishes as an open pluralistic, liberal secular democracy proud of its composite heritage, he said.

“This very idea of India is now under systemic assault.

We must understand how this assault is being mounted and then come up with out response,” Singh said. .

New Delhi, May 27 (PTI) Hitting back at Sonia Gandhi for her sharp attacks on him, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today suggested that she had been an “unconstitutional” authority exercising “real” power over the PMO during the UPA rule wheras power was now wielded only by constitutional means.

Dismissing the Congress President’s accusation that NDA government was showing “obstinate arrogance” in Parliament and that it was a government by “one person”, Modi said, “Perhaps, she is referring to the fact that earlier extra-constitutional authorities were the ones really wielding power”.

He went on to say that power was now “wielded only by constitutional means”. If the charge is that “we are working through constitutional channels and not listening to any extra constitutional authorities, then I plead guilty to that charge.”

His sharpest attack yet on both Sonia and Rahul Gandhi came in the course of an interview to PTI during which he also answered questions on “concentration” of power in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), minorities, NGOs, land acquisition and GST bills, economic reforms and a wide variety of other topics.

Asked about the criticism that all powers were concentrated in the PMO, Modi responded, “Your question is loaded. It would have been better if this question had been asked when an unconstitutional authority was sitting above the constitutional authority and exercising power over the PMO”.

He emphasised that “the Prime Minister and the PMO are very much part of the constitutional scheme, not outside it”.

Countering Rahul’s “suit-boot ki sarkar” jibe, Modi said that the Congress had not been able to “digest” its crushing defeat in Lok Sabha polls even after one year.

“The people have punished them for their sins of omission and comission. We thought they would learn from this, but it looks as though they are proving right the earlier saying that if con is the opposite of pro, then Congress is the opposite of progress,” he said..

New Delhi, May 25 (PTI) Undeterred by the controversy over his earlier “terrorists have to be neutralised only through terrorists” remark, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has asserted that he will go to “any extent” to protect India and those who attack will be “paid back in the same coin”.

Parrikar noted that his remarks evoked a sharp reaction only from one country and, without naming Pakistan, said the question was about his reaction on the terrorist camps in Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir supported by Pakistan. “So the response was based on that,” he told PTI in an interview.

He further added that the word “neutralise” does not mean only killing but also making terrorists switch the sides and surrendering.

Underlining that his remark was generic and not against anyone in particular, Parrikar maintained that only a certain part of his remarks was picked up and highlighted.

“Basically, if I have to defend my country, I will go to any extent…Whatever is required to be done will be done.

That is the basic motto which one should have.

“If someone harms my country, I have to take pro-active action….The army’s basic purpose is that if anyone attacks the country, attack him back. Pay him back in the same coin,” Parrikar asserted, underlining that one does not keep 13 lakh strong Army to “preach peace”.

However, he clarified that “I have not said I am going to do covert operation. I did not talk about it. The person who asked me talked about covert operation. Not me.”

During a media event last week, Parrikar, in reply to a question, had said, “We have to neutralise terrorists through terrorists only. Why can’t we do it? We should do it”.

The remarks generated sharp reaction from Pakistan which said it confirms apprehensions about India’s involvement in terrorism.

“This statement only confirms Pakistan’s apprehensions about India’s involvement in terrorism in Pakistan. It must be the first time that a Minister of an elected government openly advocates use of terrorism in another country on the pretext of preventing terrorism from that country or its non-state actors,” Sartaz Aziz, Adviser to Pakistan Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs, has said. .

New Delhi, May 26 (PTI) Yet another book has come out damming the previous UPA government with former TRAI Chairman Pradip Baijal alleging that the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had warned him of harm if he did not cooperate on 2G telecom licenses.

An accused in the 2G spectrum allocation scam case, he also claimed that the CBI wanted him to “implicate” Arun Shourie and Ratan Tata in the case.

In his self-published book, “The Complete Story of Indian Reforms: 2G, Power and Private Enterprise – A Practitioner’s Diary’, Baijal, who was appointed head of the telecom watchdog by the NDA government in 2003, said the 2G scam trail began under UPA’s Telecom Minister Dayanidhi Maran regime.

“They (CBI) had warned me in each case that I would be harmed if I didn’t cooperate. Incidentally, this was exactly what the eminent economist Prime Minister had told me would happen if I did not cooperate in their scheme of things in the 2G case,” Baijal writes in an apparent reference to 2G case and disinvestment issues.

There were no immediate comments available from the former Prime Minister, while Baijal told PTI “I have said everything. It is 100 per cent correct and I have evidence to prove everything.”

This is the third book in last more than a year that has come to haunt Singh and his government about state of affairs during his regime. The first book was written by his aide and media advisor Sanjaya Baru and later by former coal secretary P C Parekh who is also an accused in the case relating to coal blocks allocation. .